Challenges Specific to Female Veterans

“A growing number of women are serving in the US military. In 2008, 11% of Veterans from the Afghanistan and Iraq military operations were women. These numbers are expected to keep rising. In fact, women are the fastest growing group of Veterans” (National Center for PTSD). While this number continues to grow, women face challenges that routinely place them at risk for victimization and isolation while deployed. Additionally, reintegrating successfully to their home communities proves extremely difficult as female veterans often face systems that remain primarily male centered in their service delivery for historical and societal reasons. Although women have served in the U.S. military since the Revolutionary War, it wasn’t until 1988 that the VA began offering medical and mental health services to female veterans. A manager from a clinic dedicated to female veterans at the VA Medical Center in Salt Lake City said “the legacy of that exclusion is still being felt today” (Salt Lake Tribune, 2011)

Women also face higher rates of homelessness in comparison to their male counterparts. “Not only are returning service women nearly four times as likely as men to become homeless, but roughly 40% of those who experience homelessness also report having been sexually assaulted while in the military” (Natelson, 2010).

Significant progress has been made towards simplifying the process for applying for benefits in the case of returning veterans who suffer from PTSD through the new PTSD regulations (US Department of Veterans Affairs, 2010); however, these new regulations still fall short in meeting the needs of those whose source of PTSD is military sexual trauma related, the majority of whom are women. “Among the most pervasive stressors experienced by military women are incidents of sexual assault and harassment. By some accounts, nearly a third of female veterans report episodes of sexual assault during military service, while 71 to 90 percent report experiences of sexual harassment. These experiences are closely associated with PTSD in a variety of studies; in fact, military sexual assault is a stronger predictor of PTSD among women veterans than combat history” (Natelson’s, 2009; Murdoch et. al, 2003).

Within the context of violence against women, this is a matter of growing concern for anti-violence advocates. Responding to the needs of female veterans who experience domestic and sexual violence is among the services that many local community programs will likely be providing in the near future. For some programs across the country, this is already taking place. As we honor these service members and veterans, we need to understand the dynamics surrounding violence that come into play when working with this population. What follows are things to consider:

What may be some of the co-occurring issues unique to these survivors?

Are female service members and veterans at a higher risk for victimization?

What are the challenges faced by female veterans/survivors who are also mothers?

We compiled resources that are expected to grow over time, as more information continues to emerge in response to these needs. Included here are are testimonies, news articles, online tools, research papers and other related materials. However, one of our goals with this section of the collection is to highlight the paucity of research and funding opportunities specifically devoted to address the needs of female service members and veterans at this point in time. The few isolated efforts taking place at the national level and within some communities are currently not enough to respond to the needs of female service members and veterans. Without the institutionalization of effective interventions designed to prevent violence and address the trauma experienced by these veterans and service members, they will likely continue to be at risk for ongoing victimization and further physical and psychological harm.

The findings in this technical report, based on 2010 NISVS data, reveal that overall, the prevalence of IPV, SV, and stalking were similar among women in the U.S. population, active duty women, and wives of active duty men.

Women report exposure to many different types of traumatic events, and are especially likely to experience sexual assault in childhood, adulthood, or both. Sexual assault is a type of trauma that often leads to the onset of PTSD for both women and men. Given greater exposure to this type of trauma, women are particularly at risk for PTSD. These fact sheets have information that is specific to women veterans and trauma.

This video interview with SWAN’s Executive Director, a former marine, provides an overview of the challenges faced by female veterans while deployed and after returning to their communities. It also discusses the incidence of Military Sexual Trauma (MST) and the implications of the “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell Policy”.

This testimony particularly emphasizes the societal and institutional responses to survivors of military sexual trauma (MST) that continue to place women at greater risk for further violence and isolation. This publication also sheds light on the repercussions of the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy on service women and men.

Although homelessness plagues all veterans, the causes and consequences of having no home are different for women veterans. Young female veterans, including many with children, are increasingly joining the homeless population. Outreach that specifically targets female veterans is needed in order to ensure that these women receive the help they need.

The article reports, "More than 230,000 American women have fought in those recent wars and at least 120 have died doing so, yet the public still doesn't completely understand their contributions on the modern battlefield."

This is a news article and accompanying video in which Rep. Jane Harman, D-California is quoted saying that her "jaw dropped" when military doctors told her that four in ten women at a veterans hospital reported being sexually assaulted while in the military.

* See Women and War, where journalists, experts, female soldiers and veterans share their experiences and discuss issues including women in combat, sexual assault in the military and inadequate benefits for female veterans.